The interest in and need for increased environmental health research has steadily grown during the past decade. To address this need, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) has established goals for increased numbers of tomorrow's environmental health scientists. To this end, the focus of the Short Term Educational Experience for Research summer program at the University of Pennsylvania will help to expose selected undergraduate and high school students to the field of environmental health science through mentorship, coursework, and field experience. This program represents a collaboration of faculty and staff from the Center of Excellence in Environmental Toxicology, a cross disciplinary research initiative, the Penn Summer Mentorship Program for High School Students sponsored by the Office of the Provost, and faculty from the School of Medicine, Nursing, and Arts & Sciences. The program will provide didactic experiences in environmental and public health and provide mentorship opportunities in the defined areas of environmental exposures and health effects associated with lung and airway disease, endocrine and reproduction disruption, gene-environment interactions and oxidative stress.